SpuffyWeb Sadly Over-hyped

ActuallyGlimmer The best films of this genre always show a path and provide a takeaway for being a better person.

Lidia Draper Great example of an old-fashioned, pure-at-heart escapist event movie that doesn't pretend to be anything that it's not and has boat loads of fun being its own ludicrous self.

Curt Watching it is like watching the spectacle of a class clown at their best: you laugh at their jokes, instigate their defiance, and "ooooh" when they get in trouble.

a_chinn The vampire Radu return for this Charles Band produced sequel. Radu's head is reattached, the wooden stake removed from his heart, and he is then good as new, ready to unleash his undead malevolence upon the unsuspecting populace. The titular bloodstone serves as the film's MacGuffin, in which all the characters, both human and undead, are chasing after. I'm a huge fan of Charles Band's Full Moon Features and this film was made during the production company's heyday, when they actually had an Romanian castle at their disposal, which they inserted into the story of a number of their films ("Trancers 5: Sudden Deth" being the most forced). Not only did the European location shooting give the film added production value, this film features some better acting than most Full Moon films, which more often than not tend to be rather hammy. I also appreciate that writer/director Ted Nicolaou set out to make a more serious and straight-faced horror film than most Band productions, although there are still some elements of camp here and there. Overall, this is a classier of production than most Full Moon films, and although it's not among their best (that would be "Pit and the Pendulum," "Puppet Master III: Toulon's Revenge," "Shrunken Heads," or "Trancers" if that one counts as a Full Moon release), it's far better than their worst (i.e. "Evil Bong," "The Creeps," "Prison of the Dead" and many others, although I must admit that I still enjoy even the worst Charles Band production).

barnthebarn Straight-forward sequel to Subspecies, this time Michelle - now a fully fledged vampire - attempts to escape the evil Radu who wants her as his very own love mate. Thus she steals the ancient bloodstone and forces Radu to pursue her for both reasons. Meanwhile her obsessive sister Rebecca (Melanie Shatner, William Shatener's daughter) travels to Rome enlisting the help of a local Police lieutenant.Denice Duff in her debut as Michelle is exceptional, a grand actress and attractive too. The casting generally is very effective and Anders Hove as Radu - though perhaps less sinister than in the first film - is fitting more comfortably in to the character. Another fine effort from Ted Nicolaou and as riveting as fans might expect. Fine.

BloodTheTelepathicDog Subspecies 2 picks up right where the first one ended, with Michelle(portrayed by the far more appealing Denice Duff) fleeing from a resurrected Radu. In Denice's possession is the Bloodstone, an ancient relic that contains the blood of saints, that Radu is determined to retrieve.This doesn't suffer from the typical sequel downfalls, as director Ted Nicolaou keeps the set creepy and paces the film marvelously. Anders Hove, as cinema's most accurate vampire, albeit Max Schreck, is the only returning cast member from the original. Laura Tate does not reprise her role as Michelle, leaving the character to a far more capable and attractive Denice Duff.As Denice struggles with her new found lifestyle, she calls her sister, portrayed by William Shatner's daughter Melanie, to help her. Obviously not thinking about her sister's safety, Denice delivers her to near certain death. Helping Melanie are US embassy stud Kevin Blair and oddball professor Michael Denish. Kevin portrays the skeptic, but is enamored with Melanie, so tags along.I have seen all of the Subspecies films and this one is my second favorite, right behind the original. VIOLENCE: $$$ (Denice struggles with feeding on a grungy rockstar wannabe while Radu indulges. There is moderate vampire mayhem here but the gore in the original was superior).NUDITY: $$ (Denice takes the patented horror film shower scene which Ted plays more for characterization than for skin. He shows the tortured woman weeping under the showerhead and doesn't use the gratuitous angle).STORY: $$$$ (The screenplay is rather solid despite Denice's characters lack of regard for her sister's safety. The story emphasis is on Denice, as we must watch and see if she can resist Radu and if Radu can control his "fledgling").ACTING: $$$$$ (Exceptional acting, supplied chiefly by Denice Duff. Ms. Duff has the unrivaled ability to capture every emotion in the human emotional handbag. Her work far exceeds Laura Tate's boring portrayal of Michelle in the original. Denice Duff should offer acting lessons to all those A-List sorry excuses for actresses that the tabloids love so much! Anders Hove was better in the original; much more fiendish than he is here).

Volstag As with most movies of this type (i.e. B-grade horror), my hope is to find one that is unintentionally hilarious, every step of the way. One that promotes constant riffing from me and my friends. Picking a good "bad movie" appears to be more difficult than picking a good "good" movie (if that makes any sense). Unfortunately, "Bloodstone: Subspecies II" [B:S2] is neither bad enough to be good, nor good enough to be good.This might sound weird, but B:S2 was written, directed and acted by folks with a modicum of intelligence. I will also begrudgingly admit there's a small degree of artistic talent exhibited as well. The best bad movies are made by people who have no business making movies (for an example of what I'm talking about, rent "Troll 2" or "The Keeper of Time" -- those movies are priceless. Nay, they're National Treasures).Don't get me wrong, this movie is bad. But it's not bad enough. The brand of "bad" portrayed in this movie is the slow, plodding, monotonous variety -- not the "insanely stupid bad" that I crave. It's for the same reasons that it's not "good" either. The pacing is too slow for a B-grade horror (IMO). It starts on a strong note, and then slowly dwindles into nothingness -- until its brief resurrection near the very end. I believe this came about due to Mr. Nicolaou's attempt at "creepy/moody atmospherics". There's very limited dialogue, and what little there is makes no attempt at driving the story. Most of the movie centers around Michelle Morgan (Denice Duff) shambling around Bucharest looking scared and sedated. I also got the strong impression that Mr. Nicolaou wanted to make the most of his "on location" shoot, by shoe-horning every piece of gothic architecture he could find into the movie. Another thing we found weird was the "Bloodstone" itself. Ostensibly it's the centerpiece of the story, even though they never mention, or discuss it, for a good 2/3rds of the movie. Huh? Apparently the Bloodstone can dispense the "blood of the saints" for a vampire to suckle on. Okay, so what? They never really describe why it's so important to Radu. Does it make him into a super vampire? No. Does it give him extra powers? No. What the heck does it do?I've wasted enough time discussing this.Good movie score: 5/10. Bad movie score: 6/10. In short: mediocre... no matter how you look at it.